Wildlife-Rich Habitat Fund guidance

Before starting an application for the Wildlife-Rich Habitat Fund (WRHF), please read the guidance below and contact us at Norfolk Coast Protected Landscape to discuss your project idea.

For a short overview of the programme, return to Wildlife-Rich Habitats Fund.

Wildlife-Rich Habitat Fund Application Form

Applicant guidance

Eligibility
Consents and permissions
Applying for funding
Evaluation
What the funding will pay for
Aligning with the Norfolk Coast National Landscape Management Plan
Is my land eligible?
Maintenance agreements
Payment rates
Frequently asked questions

Eligibility

The Wildlife-Rich Habitat Fund (WRHF) is open to all – the private, public and charity sector.
You must manage all the land included in the application and have control of all the activities you’d like to undertake, or you must have written consent from all parties who have this management and control. Projects must not result in currently productive farmland being taken out of production.
Common land is eligible for support. You can apply as a landowner with sole rights or as a group of commoners acting together.
Land must not be one of the following protected sites: SSSI, SPA, SAC or MCZ. Other protected sites are eligible.
Projects must be within or of benefit to Norfolk Coast National Landscape.
Funding for Norfolk Coast National Landscape (formerly Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) will be allocated through a transparent application process managed by Norfolk Coast Protected Landscape.
Applications will be accepted for grant values of a minimum of £15,000 and a maximum of £40,000.
All applications will be judged by the Protected Landscapes Manager or the Norfolk Coast Partnership Chair.
This is a programme of funding for one-off projects, not an agri-environment scheme. Carrying out a project through this programme will not affect your ability to enter the new environmental land management schemes (ELMS).

Consents and permissions

Identify the consents and permissions you need as soon as you start your application. This will depend on any designations attached to the land included in the application and on the activities and items that you are applying for in your application.
Contact relevant organisations for advice and consents, where required.
Be able to provide your Protected Landscape with the evidence needed to support your application.
You may be unaware of some of the consents and permissions you need until after you have received advice. If you have any questions, please contact the Norfolk Coast Protected Landscape Nature Recovery Officer. The Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) and your local planners may also be able to assist.

Applying for funding

Before applying, we require you to contact the Nature Recovery Officer at Norfolk Coast Protected Landscape to discuss your application.
Applications for our area will be accepted between 26 May and 30 June 2026, closing at 23:59.
Funding will be awarded to successful applicants after the window closes, however you are encouraged to submit your application as soon as it is ready.
All projects must be completed by the end of February 2027 and claimed by the end of March 2027.
The Nature Recovery Officer may wish to visit your potential project location and meet you to discuss your ideas.

Evaluation

In submitting this application, you confirm that you will work with your local Protected Landscape team to participate in a proportionate project evaluation and, if required, feed into programme evaluation led by the programme’s external evaluation team.

What the funding will pay for

The funding will pay for habitat creation and restoration-based projects on one landholding or across a number of holdings which provide direct benefits to the Norfolk Coast National Landscape.

The WRHF supports national commitments including:

The Environment Act habitat target: To create or restore at least 500,000 hectares of a range of wildlife-rich habitats outside of protected sites by 2042, with an interim target of a total of 250,000 hectares by 2030.
The 30by30 target: To effectively conserve and manage 30% of England’s land by 2030.
The Protected Landscapes Targets and Outcomes Framework: Restore or create more than 250,000 hectares of a range of wildlife-rich habitats within Protected Landscapes, outside protected sites by 2042.
The WRHF will support delivery of the Environmental Improvement Plan and Local Nature Recovery Strategies (LNRS).
Wildlife‑rich habitat creation refers to establishing new habitat of a type listed in TIN219. Wildlife‑rich habitat must be a priority habitat or a Schedule 1 habitat that is of ‘sufficient quality’ which means it is capable of supporting the typical flora and fauna associated with that habitat type.

Projects must:

Increase the extent of wildlife‑rich habitat (not improve or maintain condition of habitat which is already wildlife-rich).
Deliver actions that are sufficient for the relevant habitat type to develop.
Follow the definitions and desired outcomes in Table 2 of TIN219.
Be created on land where wildlife-rich habitat is absent OR
Created where actions establish a wildlife‑rich habitat on land that is currently not a wildlife-rich habitat type.

Once the sufficient actions are underway so there is confidence that the wildlife-rich habitat will be established, the works can count towards the habitat target. This recognises that recovery, as a response, can be ongoing.
For example, the programme might support projects associated with the following degraded habitats:

Any existing habitat on drained peat where hydrological restoration is required to restore peatland wildlife-rich habitat.
Coastal floodplain grazing marsh even when not on peat, where it is being restored to a wetland habitat.
Freshwater, coastal and estuarine habitats affected by pollution, hydrological modification, physical damage, or invasive non-native species (INNS) where sufficient action is taken to address these pressures
Woodlands with less than 70% native canopy, where canopy reduction of non‑native species is required to establish a woodland with at least 70% native canopy (including Planted Woods on Ancient Woodland sites (PAWS) restoration)
Terrestrial semi‑natural habitats behind sea defences where actions restore coastal processes such as saline inundation or managed realignment.
Habitat listed in Schedule 1 that Biodiversity Net Gain has assessed as ‘medium distinctiveness’ and not in good condition, where the project will restore it to a priority habitat.

What the funding will not pay for:

Land acquisitions
Partial or insufficient actions.
Maintenance or enhancement of existing wildlife‑rich habitat.
Compensatory habitat required by planning.
Actions on protected sites designated as of January 2023. Action can take place on land that has been or may be designated after January 2023.
Creation that destroys an existing wildlife‑rich habitat (e.g., creating dry habitats on peat).

What outcomes are expected?

The Wildlife Rich Habitat Fund will pay for projects that provide value for money and meet the above outcomes.
Your project must help to deliver at least one of the objectives in the Norfolk Coast National Landscape Management Plan 2019-24 .

Aligning with the Norfolk Coast National Landscape Management Plan

This project must contribute towards the priorities of the Protected Landscape the project will be delivering in. You should read the Norfolk Coast National Landscape Management Plan 2019-24 before answering this question in the application form.

Your project may also contribute towards the following targets and outcomes:

Is my land eligible?

You can check if your land is within the boundaries of the Norfolk Coast National Landscape and if it includes a protected site on the MAGIC mapping website. Follow these steps:

Select Designations
Select Land-based designations
Select Statutory
Untick all boxes apart from Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (England)/National Landscapes and SSSI, SPA, SAC and MCZ.

Land that sits within the AONB/National Landscape boundary but is not listed as a SSSI, SPA, SAC or MCZ is likely to be eligible.

For projects that meet the protected landscapes outcomes by working on land outside the protected landscapes, you can check if your land is within the eligible area of the river catchments of Norfolk Coast National Landscape on the Environment Agency – Catchment Data Explorer.

Projects must be within or of benefit to Norfolk Coast National Landscape.

Maintenance agreements

Capital infrastructure assets (including, but not limited to, fences, gates, building restoration, creation of access routes), should be maintained for 5 years from the date of completion.
Machinery assets (for example a brush harvester for grassland restoration) should be maintained for 5 years from the date of purchase.
The requirement to maintain natural and cultural assets and access activities/events (for example, management of grassland, restoration of a limekiln) delivered as part of programme will cease no later than 1 April 2029.

Payment rates

If an applicant will not make a commercial gain through a project, they could receive up to 80% of the costs, with the exception of projects with a focus on education which may receive up to 100%.
Where an applicant would benefit commercially from a project, they could receive between 40% and 80% of the costs through the Programme, depending on how much commercial benefit the project will give them.
The Programme will work alongside – not in competition with – Defra’s existing and new schemes, adding value where it is most needed. If a potential project can be rewarded through those schemes instead, you will be made aware of them. If an activity is equivalent to one under Countryside Stewardship (CS), the Programme payment rate will be the same as the CS rate. If not, we will base Programme funding offers on the projected costs of an activity (with final payments made against evidenced costs).

Frequently asked questions

Q – Do the same payment rates apply as Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL) and other Defra schemes?
A – Yes, rates must align with other schemes, for example, payment rates for capital works should, by default, be aligned with those set out in Defra schemes, including the FiPL programme – for transparency, accountability and consistency. There may be exceptional circumstances where a higher or lower rate is justified due to the specialised and/or bespoke nature of the project. However, any deviation will be the responsibility of the delivery partner to justify. Justification must be based on robust evidence against the exceptional circumstances and demonstrate value for money. Payment rates may be subject to spot checks as part of routine grant management.

Q – Can I capitalise x, y, and z?
A – Guidance on what can be capitalised is set out in the National Framework and supporting documents. Protected Landscapes teams are responsible for making these classifications and keeping adequate records to show that labour costs charged to capital are correct.

Q – Can advice, baseline surveys and management plans be capitalised if delivered within by the end of February 2027?
A – See above, and note that work that directly delivers the habitat actions required to create a wildlife-rich habitat should be prioritised over work on advice and surveys.

Q – After what length of time and how do we have to demonstrate that habitat has reached the wildlife-rich criteria?
A – The target is an action-based target, so delivery partners should have reasonable confidence that they are undertaking all of the actions required that could be reasonably expected to lead to the establishment of wildlife-rich habitat. However, they will not be required to demonstrate that the habitat has reached ‘sufficient quality’ as defined by TIN219.

Q – Can fencing costs be included?
A – Yes. If fencing is a key action required to ensure the habitat establishes successfully, it can be included as an eligible cost.

Q – Will we be able to deliver schemes off-shore (technically beyond the boundary of the National Landscape)? Especially in sub-tidal areas.
A – Yes, as long as the scheme is clearly supporting and benefiting the Protected Landscape. Sub-tidal/offshore areas are also eligible where they are part of the Protected Landscape’s management plan. Please ensure that any sub-tidal/offshore areas are not protected sites (SSSIs, SACs, SPAs, MCZs), as these are not eligible for this fund.

Q – Can I use both Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL) and Wildlife-Rich Habitat Fund (WRHF) budgets to fund individual activities that are part of the same project?
A – Yes, WRHF budget can fund individual actions — for example, part of a project funded by FiPL and part funded by WRHF. However, the ambition is for larger-scale, focused, whole-project approaches as this is where the best outcomes are achieved. Where a project is only a piecemeal addition, it should also be questioned whether it should simply be funded through FiPL alone.

Q – Are works to streams and rivers eligible?
A – Work to restore rivers and streams are eligible as they are a type of wildlife-rich habitat that can be restored by addressing pressures. The key requirement is that all pressures must be addressed for it to count: biology, morphology, hydrology and water quality, not just one element. With freshwater habitats this can be complicated, especially where upstream pressures are outside the control of the land in question, so a catchment-scale approach and working with partners is important.

Q – How does the claim process work?
A – Applicants must pay upfront for project work, and then claim costs back from the Norfolk Coast Protected Landscape Team (NCPL). Staged payments may be accepted: please discuss this with the NCPL team. Costs can only be claimed if evidence of payment is provided and will only be paid at the rate agreed in the table of costs for example 80%.

Q – What percentage reimbursements are available?
A – If an applicant will not make a commercial gain through a project, they could receive up to 80% of the costs. Projects with a focus on education which may receive up to 100%. Where an applicant would benefit commercially from a project, they could receive between 40% and 80% of the costs.

Q – How will the decision process be made?
A – After the application deadline, all projects will be assessed by the Norfolk Coast Protected Landscape team on how well they meet the criteria, value for money, and how deliverable they are within the timeframe. The project or combination of projects which score highest on these criteria and provide the best value from the fund will be selected for delivery.

Q – My land is outside Norfolk Coast National Landscape (NCNL), will it be eligible?
A – Projects must provide direct benefits to NCNL. If your project lies outside the NCNL boundary but you believe it would meet this criteria, please contact the Norfolk Coast Protected Landscape team to further discuss this.

Q – When do projects need to be delivered by?
A – All projects must be complete by 28th February 2027 and costs claimed by 31 March 2027.

Q – My project includes a SSSI/another protected area. Is it eligible?
A – Work on SSSIs, SPAs, SACs and MCZs is not eligible for the Wildlife-Rich Habitat Fund. Projects on County Wildlife Sites and other protected areas are eligible.

Q – What Maintenance Agreements will be required?
A – Capital infrastructure assets (including, but not limited to, fences, gates, creation of access routes) should be maintained for 5 years from the date of completion. Machinery assets (for example a brush harvester for grassland restoration) should be maintained for 5 years from the date of purchase. The requirement to maintain natural and cultural assets and access to activities/events will cease no later than 1 April 2029.

Q – Who can I talk to for more information?
A – Please contact the Norfolk Coast Protected Landscape Nature Recovery Officer at norfolkcoast@norfolk.gov.uk with any further questions. If you have a project which you think would be a good fit for the Wildlife-Rich Habitat Fund please get in touch so we can help you with your application.

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